Throughout the book The Secret Life of Bees, Lily Owens, a forteen year old girl from South Carolina faces many physical and mental conflicts. From the time she was four years old she has had to deal with the accidental killing of her mother and her abusive father. During her childhood she always wanted some information about her mother's death and the understanding of everything her mother believed in.
Lily lived in the South during the Civil Rights Movement which put her in the middle of many racist acts and hatred toward the black people in her community including her stand-in-mother Rosaleen. While Lily and Rosaleen were walking in town to registar Rosaleen to vote, three white men started making comments about Rosaleen. She didn't feel the need to say anything or make any comments, she simply expressed her feelings by spitting her snuff on their shoes. After this incident Lily and Rosaleen were both put in jail. T.Ray, Lily's father, had to come and bail her out, but left Rosaleen there to fend for herself. Rosaleen was soon after put in the hospital because the three men were allowed in her cell to get their revenge. Lily then decides that she is tired of her abusive father and wants to get away from everything. So, she packs a bag and goes to the hospital to free Rosaleen.
Lily decides to run to Tiburon, a small town in South Carolina which she believes will bring her closer to her mother. Once in Tiburon, Lily visits a general store and sees a picture of the Black Madonna on a honey jar. This picture is very similar to the one she found among her mother's belongings. She later finds out the honey jar came from the Boatwright sisters, also affectionatly known as the Calendar Sisters. She then travels to the "Pepto-Bismol" house to seek shelter and learn more about her mother. When she arrives she decides it is not a good idea to bring up her mother. Rosaleen and Lily were then taken in by May, June, and August. While stayin there they helped with chores around the house and taking care of the bees of their farm and in the surrounding counties.
While working at the bee farm, Lily befriends a young black boy named Zach. Zach and Lily become very close, but soon realize that they can never be together due to racial conflicts. One day while distributing honey around the county, Zach becomes involved in a small protest and then later becomes arrested. When this news reached May, she became severely depressed. She decides to go down to the local creek for a walk. A few minutes later June, August, Rosaleen, and Lily decide to find her. They find May at the bottom of the creek with a suicide note. The two remaining Calendar sisters decide that their life must go on with out May and make the most out of the rest of their lives.
After the funeral, many changes occur in the Boatwright household. August retires from her work on the bee farm. June finally gets married to a TIburon school principal named Neil. Lily eventually tells August the reason she came to Tiburon and the "Pepto-Bismol" house. She explains to August about her mother's death, abusive father, and the picture of the Black Madonna she found among her mother's things. August then informs Lily of her mother's past and her role in August's life.
One fateful day, T. Ray finds Lily's whereabouts and come to retrieve her from the Boatwright household. After much deliberation between August, Lily, and T. Ray, Lily continued living her charmed life at the Boatwrights.
The Secret Life of Bees
Plot
Throughout the book The Secret Life of Bees, Lily Owens, a forteen year old girl from South Carolina faces many physical and mental conflicts. From the time she was four years old she has had to deal with the accidental killing of her mother and her abusive father. During her childhood she always wanted some information about her mother's death and the understanding of everything her mother believed in.Lily lived in the South during the Civil Rights Movement which put her in the middle of many racist acts and hatred toward the black people in her community including her stand-in-mother Rosaleen. While Lily and Rosaleen were walking in town to registar Rosaleen to vote, three white men started making comments about Rosaleen. She didn't feel the need to say anything or make any comments, she simply expressed her feelings by spitting her snuff on their shoes. After this incident Lily and Rosaleen were both put in jail. T.Ray, Lily's father, had to come and bail her out, but left Rosaleen there to fend for herself. Rosaleen was soon after put in the hospital because the three men were allowed in her cell to get their revenge. Lily then decides that she is tired of her abusive father and wants to get away from everything. So, she packs a bag and goes to the hospital to free Rosaleen.
Lily decides to run to Tiburon, a small town in South Carolina which she believes will bring her closer to her mother. Once in Tiburon, Lily visits a general store and sees a picture of the Black Madonna on a honey jar. This picture is very similar to the one she found among her mother's belongings. She later finds out the honey jar came from the Boatwright sisters, also affectionatly known as the Calendar Sisters. She then travels to the "Pepto-Bismol" house to seek shelter and learn more about her mother. When she arrives she decides it is not a good idea to bring up her mother. Rosaleen and Lily were then taken in by May, June, and August. While stayin there they helped with chores around the house and taking care of the bees of their farm and in the surrounding counties.
While working at the bee farm, Lily befriends a young black boy named Zach. Zach and Lily become very close, but soon realize that they can never be together due to racial conflicts. One day while distributing honey around the county, Zach becomes involved in a small protest and then later becomes arrested. When this news reached May, she became severely depressed. She decides to go down to the local creek for a walk. A few minutes later June, August, Rosaleen, and Lily decide to find her. They find May at the bottom of the creek with a suicide note. The two remaining Calendar sisters decide that their life must go on with out May and make the most out of the rest of their lives.
After the funeral, many changes occur in the Boatwright household. August retires from her work on the bee farm. June finally gets married to a TIburon school principal named Neil. Lily eventually tells August the reason she came to Tiburon and the "Pepto-Bismol" house. She explains to August about her mother's death, abusive father, and the picture of the Black Madonna she found among her mother's things. August then informs Lily of her mother's past and her role in August's life.
One fateful day, T. Ray finds Lily's whereabouts and come to retrieve her from the Boatwright household. After much deliberation between August, Lily, and T. Ray, Lily continued living her charmed life at the Boatwrights.